A Month of Sundays
by Brown Eyes Parker
Summary: Repost. Jane and Lisbon try to get their relationship back to where it was before he left for Vegas and slept with Lorelai. But they discover some things can't ever return to normal. Post Season 4, sequel to "Sinking". Previously called "Remember and Dance With Me".
1. Chapter 1

**Dance With Me and Remember**

**A Jane/Lisbon Story**

**By Brown Eyes Parker**

**Author's Note:**

**I SO want to write something entirely fluffy and kissy-kissy. But I left Jane and Lisbon with a little bit of drama to deal with, and by golly, I will deal with it. . . even with the spoilers and the trailer. Hope you guys don't mind, I promise that the ending will be worth it this time. Warning, this chapter might be a little OOC. But I really had no idea where to go, because I am SO excited and writing angst is starting to wear on me. The title of this story taken from "In the End" by Snow Patrol.**

**Disclaimer:**

**I own nothing. And right now, I really DON'T want to own anything. For the time being, I'm glad to leave the rights in Bruno Heller's is capable hands. He's doing such a fabulous job at things.**

**.**

**Chapter 1**

_Watch my face as I pretend to feel no pain_

**Heartbreak Warfare_**

"Table for one this afternoon Agent Lisbon?" Miranda asked as the petite brunette stepped out of the rainy Sunday afternoon and into the crowded diner.

"No," she replied, shaking her head as she looked around the room. "I'm actually meeting somebody— oh, he's already here!"

Miranda's mouth dropped open as she spotted the person Lisbon was talking about. "When did Mr. Jane get back?"

Lisbon shrugged. "About a month ago, I guess."

"Funny, you two still haven't been in together—"

Lisbon shrugged again, her eyes never leaving Jane's. "We haven't had time. Work is keeping us totally swapped."

Miranda nodded, tugging at her string of pearls and pursing her lips. "Well, come on and I'll seat you."

**.**

Jane's face lit up when Lisbon slid in the seat across from him.

"You're here! I honestly didn't think you were going to come."

"Why would you think that? I invited _you _to lunch, didn't I?" Lisbon replied, pulling her menu up over her face and pursuing it like it was the most interesting thing that she had ever read in her life.

"Doesn't matter, you could have still changed your mind," Jane said. "You could have decided that you still wanted to be mad at me, and called to cancel or made excuses to why you couldn't come and have lunch with me."

Lisbon lowered her menu and looked at him. "It was exhausting being angry at you. And I'm tired of being tired."

Jane smiled at her. "Well, I'm glad you're here."

Lisbon managed to return his smile as she snapped her menu shut. "I'm glad that I'm here too."

At that moment, Miranda came up to their table and grinned at Jane. "Good to see you again Mr. Jane, things weren't the same around here without you."

"It's good to see you too," Jane replied.

"Are you guys ready to order? Or do I need to give you a few minutes?" She asked, digging in her apron pocket for her ordering pad.

"I'm ready," Jane answered as Lisbon nodded.

"Okay then," Miranda said. "Who's first?"

"Lisbon?" Jane asked. "Would you like to go first?"

"I'll just have some coffee and a bowl of soup," Lisbon answered, afraid that she wouldn't be able to eat anything; her stomach was still a knotted mess.

"And for you?" Miranda asked, turning to Jane after she had jotted down Lisbon's order.

"The same for me, except I'll have tea instead of coffee," Jane replied.

"Coming right up," she said, tucking her note pad away and her pen in her hair.

Lisbon sighed as Miranda disappeared and toyed with the edge of the paper placemat in front of her. She looked at Jane and opened her mouth to say something, then closed it again not sure exactly of what to say.

Jane, sensing her discomfort, quickly spoke. "It sure is raining a lot out there."

Lisbon nodded, thankful for something easy to talk about. "It's the kind of day where I want to curl up under the covers and watch an old movie on TCM, or listen to Norah Jones and drink a glass of wine."

"Then why didn't you?"

"I told you. . . I'm tired of being angry. I'm tired of Rigsby and Van Pelt wincing every time we're in the same room—"

"So, then this is strictly business?" Jane asked, his eyes sparkling in the low florescent lighting.

"No," Lisbon admitted, looking down at her hands. "It's because I've missed you too."

Her last words were spoken so quietly that Jane didn't catch them. But he knew better than ask her to repeat them because she wouldn't, and he really wasn't in any mood to try and force her into saying something that she didn't want to say.

"Here you guys go," Miranda said as she returned with their drinks and set them down. "I realized I forgot to tell you the soup of the day. It's vegetable beef. I hope that's okay with you. If not, I can take your order again."

"That's fine with me," Lisbon replied as she finally looked up.

"It's fine with me too," Jane answered.

"Okay, I'll be right back then."

Lisbon drummed her fingers on the table and looked around the café before she dug around in her pockets for a quarter and slipped it into the jukebox, buying herself three minutes and thirty seconds of noise so that she could figure out something. . . _anything_ to say him. But she found that she couldn't say or ask the things that she wanted to.

She would probably find out things that she didn't want to find out. Or maybe she wouldn't find out the things that she wanted to.

Either way, it was too big of a risk to take. True she had forgiven him, but she still wasn't ready to face some of their biggest problems. She didn't know if she'd ever be ready to face them, she didn't even know if she _wanted _to face them.

The song ended and the silence that followed was almost deafing and Lisbon was thankful for the neighboring chatter around them. It saved her from having to fill it too quickly.

She was about to try and say something when Jane was the first to speak again.

"I haven't really had a chance to talk to Rigsby since I've gotten back and everything happened, but I was wondering how Benjamin is and how things with Sarah are going. . ."

Lisbon smiled. An easy subject to talk about. "Benjamin's great, you won't believe how much he's grown. And things are getting pretty serious with Sarah; he actually mentioned something about proposing the other day."

"He dropped the 'M' word?" Jane replied, looking slightly surprised. "I do believe our little Rigsby is finally becoming a little man."

"Yeah, I was surprised to," Lisbon answered, surprised at how easy the conversation was suddenly coming to her. "To be honest, I thought he was still a little bit hung up on Van Pelt."

"Meh, she was his first true love. He's always going to have a special place in his heart for her," Jane said. "But Lisbon, any real man will find that there's room enough in his heart for two women."

Lisbon looked a little shocked by his statement and she wondered for a moment if he even believed what he was saying. She was just about to ask him about it when Miranda returned balancing two steaming bowls of soup.

"Looks good," Jane said. "Give my compliments to the chef."

Lisbon dragged her spoon through her lunch as she realized that she didn't really have the courage to ask if he felt that real men had enough room in their hearts for two women.

And she figured that it was one of the questions that she didn't know if she had permission to ask or not.

as she watched Jane eat his meal, she thought about how much she couldn't wait for things to _really _return to normal. She still felt so unsure of everything, especially of herself and where she stood with Jane.

**TBC. . .**

**Author's Note II:**

**So, this probably is all over the place and not my best work. I had a good flow going earlier, but my father called me for family worship and ruined it completely. Plus the spoilers and promo for the new season of the Mentalist has totally thrown me through a loop. Tell me what you thought about this chapter, I'd love to know.**

**Love,**

**Holly, 9/6/2012_**


	2. Chapter 2

**Shout-Outs: Berkwood Court, Special Agent Baker, Frogster, Little-FireStar84, and kbcounty37 for reviewing the first chapter of this story.**

**Author's Note: **

**No song this is based on today. I couldn't find one, I wrote this chapter to a bunch of randomly songs strung together. But I will have a soundtrack at the end of this story, I'll let you know when I have it ready. And I do have a quote that I thought fit well. Now onto the chapter, I hope you guys like it.**

**Disclaimer: **

**I own nothing, if I did. . . things wouldn't be as they are on the show. And they kind of would be at the same time. (Try and make sense of that!)**

**Chapter 2**

"**Change in all things is sweet."**

**Aristotle_ **

"Only Rigsby would think having pizza and beer at an engagement party is a good thing," Jane said as he came up to Lisbon.

Lisbon smiled at him. "It's only because the party was so last minute. I'm sure Sarah would have planned it better if she had had more time."

"Sarah is all things sweet," Jane said. "If it were any other woman, she would have _never_ allowed pizza and beer at her engagement party. The whole entire wedding from the engagement to the wedding night is about the bride."

Lisbon shook her head and took a sip of her Samuel Adams. "I don't know Jane. . . personally I believe that the wedding is about _both_ the bride and groom. Of course that's just _me_; my sister-in-laws and a good number of my friends would disagree with me on that point."

"I'm sure," Jane said dryly, as he sipped slowly on his own beer. "But you aren't like other women. . . you're different."

Lisbon frowned. "What's that—"

"Hey guys," Cho said, coming up and cutting Lisbon off before she could finish her sentence. "The party's breaking up soon, Ben is getting fussy and Sarah wants things to quiet down here before she and Rigsby put him to bed."

"Okay," Lisbon agreed. "I'll get my things and then we can get out of here. Are you coming with us Jane?"

Jane nodded and followed Lisbon to get his suit jacket from Sarah and Rigsby's bedroom.

Cho smiled to himself as they walked off together, things seemed like they were finally returning to normal between the pair.

And yet, the Korean man knew that whatever was between Jane and Lisbon before couldn't be anymore, nothing in life could ever really go back to the way it was before. Things could only move forward to something more or they would dissolve into nothing, leaving the people emptier than before.

He just hoped that Jane and Lisbon would realize they couldn't just be what they were before, or things had the potential to get worse than they were when he had gotten back from his stint in Las Vegas.

Cho would never say it aloud, but he couldn't bear to see that happen between his two teammates. Not when he knew they needed each other badly.

**.**

"Lunch tomorrow?" Jane asked after Cho had dropped them both at the CBI and bid them tonight.

Lisbon smiled teasingly. "I might be busy."

"Oh," Jane said, his face falling slightly. "Maybe next week then."

Lisbon bit back her laughter. "I was just kidding Jane, I'd love to have lunch with you. Except let's go anywhere but the diner. I'm in the mood for a change of scenery."

"We don't have to go to the diner," Jane assured her. "If you want, I could order pizza and just come to your apartment."

"No!" Lisbon said, shaking her head. "Let's meet at the little Italian restaurant a couple of blocks away from my church."

"Okay," Jane agreed willingly. "What time would you like me to be there?"

"Anytime around noon would be good," Lisbon answered after a second. "I have something to do in the morning."

Jane nodded. "I'll be there."

Lisbon smiled. "Good."

"We better be going now, or the night guard will start to get suspicious," Jane told her.

"Okay," Lisbon said, glancing at her watch. "I'll see you tomorrow then."

"See you tomorrow," Jane answered, fighting off the sudden urge to gather her up in his arms and kiss her so he could finally banish the taste of Lorelei's cheap vodka, cigarettes and obnoxious ninety-cent bubble gum from his mouth.

If he were being honest with himself, he'd been trying to resist kissing her ever since he had seen her again in the church sanctuary after the six months they had spent apart.

"See you tomorrow," Lisbon replied, breaking into his thoughts and reminding him that he couldn't kiss her.

Not yet anyways.

Jane fumbled for his car keys and didn't look at Lisbon as he unlocked his car door. "Goodnight Lisbon."

"Sweet dreams Jane," she replied as she took her own keys out from her pocket.

He glanced at her as she climbed into her SUV and saw that she was smiling as she drove away. He smiled too as he got into his Citroen and followed her out of the parking lot, for the first time in eight months he felt truly peaceful.

**.**

She was there at twelve on the dot, wearing a denim pencil skirt, white blouse, and a non-descript pair of skinny black boots, her dark hair was pulled away from her face in a neat ponytail.

"I didn't have time to get changed after mass this morning," she told him as he held the door open for her.

"Don't worry about it, I think you look really nice," he told her as he opened the door for her.

"Thank you," Lisbon said, flushing at the compliment slightly.

Jane just nodded.

"Two for lunch?" The bleach-blonde hostess asked as she picked up a couple of menus.

"Yes," Lisbon answered, tugging at her cross necklace.

The hostess led them to a booth in a discreet corner of the restaurant and told them that their waiter would be coming to take their drink orders in a minute.

They both nodded and opened their menus at the same time, pursuing them quietly as the younger girl disappeared.

"Anything look good to you?" Jane asked after a couple of minutes had passed.

Lisbon looked at him and shrugged. "I was thinking about getting the Chicken Bryan. What about you?"

"You know, I really have no idea what I'm in the mood for," Jane answered. "Last night, I thought that I really wanted pizza. I'm not so sure that's what I want anymore though. Because the seafood cannelloni looks like it could be really good."

"Oh," Lisbon said. "I was talking to a girl after church this morning, and she told me that the seafood cannelloni is her husband's favorite thing to get when they come here for dinner. She says that he _highly _recommends it, and that he knows what he's talking about, because they come here a lot."

"I guess I'll have to try that then," Jane said. "Did she recommend anything to drink with dinner?"

"She said that they always order a Riesling," Lisbon answered.

"It's a little too early for wine," Jane replied, just the thought of drinking in the afternoon was enough to turn his stomach.

He had done enough of _that_ during his stay in Vegas. Since he had gotten back to California, he had limited his drinking to a beer during their closed case pizza parties, and the odd glass of wine here and there at the end of a particularly long day of investigating or interrogation with Lorelei.

"Okay," Lisbon said. "She also said that the Italian sodas were really good."

Jane shrugged and was just about to reply when their waiter came up to them.

"Hi, my name is Pete and I'll be your waiter for this afternoon. Can I start you off with drinks and appetizers?"

"I'll have a black cherry Italian soda please," Lisbon answered.

Pete nodded and jotted down her order as he turned to Jane. "And for you sir?"

"I'll try your cherry-lime Italian soda," he replied after looking over the long list of Italian soda flavors.

"Very good," the younger boy said. "And do you want any appetizers or do you know what you're ordering?"

"I think we're ready to order," Lisbon answered for the both of them. "I'm going to have Chicken Bryan and my friend's going to have the seafood Cannelloni."

"Okay then," Pete said as he tucked his pad of paper away. "I'll be right back with your drinks and some bread."

"Thank you," Lisbon replied as she handed over their menus.

Jane nodded his agreement and smiled at Lisbon as Pete left them. "So, when did you start going to mass again?"

"A couple weeks after you left," Lisbon answered, running her hand up and down the red-and-white checked tablecloth. "I went to pray for—"

"Me?" Jane finished when she faltered and looked away.

"Yes," Lisbon replied. "It didn't stop me from worrying, but it did help a little bit."

"I really am sorry Lisbon," Jane said, putting his hand over her roaming one, causing it to still. "Believe me, if I could go back and do it differently than I would."

"Really?" Lisbon asked as she forced herself to look into his eyes.

"I swear I would," Jane told her sincerely.

"I know," Lisbon said quietly.

Jane debated telling her that he had dreamed of her every night, that she had been the one thought that had kept him from completely losing himself in Vegas.

But he couldn't bring himself to open his mouth and say the words to her. It would open up to many questions that he wasn't ready to answer yet.

"Let's talk about something cheerful," Jane said, shoving his thoughts to the back of his mind. "How's Annie?"

"She's good," Lisbon answered, smiling slightly at the mention of her favorite niece. "She asks about you sometimes, but don't worry. I didn't tell her that you left for six months, so you won't have to deal with her hounding you when you see each other again."

"Oh?" Jane asked. "She's coming for another visit?"

"She was talking about it," Lisbon answered. "Maybe during her long weekend in October, unless her mom stops her."

"That sounds nice," Jane said. "I hope she does come for a visit, I'd like to see her again."

"She'd like to see you again too," Lisbon told him. "You really made an impression on her."

"Really?" Jane asked.

"Don't pretend that you're surprised," Lisbon said. "You have that kind of effect on people, and you know it."

"I'm not denying it," Jane answered. "I just thought Annie was no-nonsense like her aunt was."

"Yeah, but you got me in the end too."

"I did?" Jane asked.

"You know you did," Lisbon answered, looking down again.

**.**

"Do you want to order some dessert?" Jane asked, scraping up the last bit of goat cheese from Lisbon's plate and licking it off his fork.

Lisbon shook her head and finished the last few dregs of Jane's cherry-lime Italian soda. "I'm so full; I think I'd burst if I ate another bite. Besides, I have a few chores to do at home and I have to swing by the office to finish up some paperwork I didn't get a chance to do on Friday."

"Okay," Jane said, masking his disappointment. "Maybe next week then?"

"Nex-next week?" Lisbon repeated, her eyes widening slightly. "You want to get lunch with me again _next week_?"

"Only if you want to get lunch next week," Jane replied.

"I'll have to see what I have going on," Lisbon answered. "But I'd love to go with you. . . if I don't have anything going on."

Jane's face lit up. "Good! I know the perfect deli to take you to, they have cheesecake to die for."

"Well then, I definitely hope I don't have anything going on then," Lisbon said as she got to her feet and put her hand in her pocket, pulling out a handful of bills.

"It's on me," Jane told her as she started to hand him the cash.

"Really?" Lisbon checked.

"Really," Jane assured her. "I'll see you tomorrow Lisbon. You have a good rest of your afternoon."

"You too," Lisbon said. "And thanks for treating me to lunch."

"Anytime," Jane replied. "See you tomorrow."

"See you tomorrow!" Lisbon answered cheerfully, shoving her money back in her pocket and stopping herself from kissing Jane on the cheek.

Jane watched her go, pleased to see that the spring in Lisbon's step had almost returned.

**TBC. . .**

**Author's Note II:**

**Okay, so it might have been a little OOC. And a little rushed, but I just wrote as the words came to mind. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and that you'll tell me if you did. Or you can tell me if you didn't, I'm not picky. I'd just love to hear feedback.**

**Until next time!**

**Love,**

**Holly, 9/15/2012_**


	3. Chapter 3

**Shout-Outs: Frogster, Little-Firestar84, Colourful Glitter, Berkwood Court, Special Agent Baker, jessicalon7, LaurenvBelladonna, and HannahbananaJane for reviewing the last chapter of this story.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything. If I did, I'd have money. And I really don't have money, I just have enough for Taylor Swift's new CD next week and my brother's Christmas gift in December. But that's way more than you needed to know. **

**Author's Note:**

**I renamed this story "A Month of Sundays", because it takes place over a month of Sundays. I thought it fit WAY better than "Remember and Dance With Me'". **

**I'm sorry if the name change confused some people, it wasn't intentional.**

**.**

**Chapter 3**

"You know _Lover_, the more time you spend with her, the bigger the target she's going to become," Lorelei said early Sunday morning a week later.

"It's just _lunch_," Jane replied, taking her bait before he could stop himself.

Lorelei's mouth set into a thin line. "Right. It's_ just_ lunch, and Red John is just a _man_."

"I'm not here to talk about my personal life," Jane retorted.

"Then what are you here for Patrick?" Lorelei asked as she leaned towards him, her voice growing husky.

"You know what I'm here for," Jane answered almost irritably.

She leaned back and folded her arms across, frowning at him. "Well, you aren't going to get it. Not today, and not ever. So, run off to your little plaything and have your fun while you can. But I can promise you that it won't last for long."

Jane knew she was looking for a response, but he wasn't going to dignify her with one. He simply got to his feet and smiled at the woman.

"Goodbye Lorelei, have a nice afternoon. I'll be back later."

Lorelei smiled seductively, just like she always did before he was about to leave. "Of course you will. You always come back."

**.**

Jane glanced at his cell phone for the fifth time. He had been waiting for Lisbon to show up to for their lunch date for over two hours, and he was getting worried. Lorelei's words from earlier were playing over and over again in his head.

Just when he was starting to fear the worst, his phone beeped. He picked it up quickly, relief flooding him when he saw that Lisbon had texted him.

_I'm not feeling well today. Could we reschedule?_

He frowned at the two lines she had sent him. Then he snapped his phone shut without bothering to reply, there was no way that he was going to let her off the hook _that_ easily. He called the waitress over and ordered two slices of cheesecake to go before he completely lost his nerve and changed his mind about going to see her.

**.**

"Lisbon," he shouted as he banged on her door. "I know you're in there! Let me in!"

"Go away Jane!" She replied, her voice thick with tears.

"Not until you let me see you, just for a second!" He answered, knocking on the door again.

He heard her sigh and then the lock clicking. The door opened and she appeared in the threshold, not looking at him.

"Hey," he said. "Is everything okay?"

She shook her head slowly and sniffed slightly.

"Is it something I did?" Jane asked.

"Not this time," Lisbon answered, still avoiding his eyes.

"Then what is it?" He all but demanded. "Teresa, talk to me _please_!"

She finally raised her head to look at him. "A friend of mine died on Tuesday. He-he was there for me when I really needed a friend, and now. . . now, he's just gone, and I didn't even get a chance to say goodbye—"

"Oh Lisbon. . ." Jane said, pulling her into a bone crushing hug. "Oh Lisbon, I'm sorry—"

"It isn't your fault," Lisbon replied, burying her head in his shoulder and closing her eyes.

"How did he die?" Jane asked, resting his chin on her head and holding her close.

"They said that he went peacefully. . . in his sleep," Lisbon answered. "He was older; so, I guess it was just a matter of time before it happened. It doesn't ease the ache all that much though and he died before I got the chance to tell him. . ."

"Tell him what?" Jane prodded when she had trailed off, releasing his grip on her a little bit and holding her at arm's length, so he could look at her.

Lisbon shook her head. "It doesn't matter," she answered quickly.

Jane frowned slightly, knowing that it probably wasn't true. But he decided to drop the subject for the time being, and try to get her mind off of her friend passing away.

"Go and get your shoes," he said. "We're going to go out."

"Going out?" Lisbon repeated. "Where are we going?"

"You'll see," Jane answered mysteriously.

"I'm a mess though," Lisbon replied. "And I'm still in my church clothes."

Jane took a handkerchief out of his pocket and wiped her face gently. "There," he said, smiling in satisfaction. "Not so messy now, and you look beautiful in your church clothes. Now! Go and get your shoes!"

Lisbon sighed. "Fine, I'll be right back."

A few minutes later, she returned wearing an old pair of brown boots and a light jacket.

"Ready?" He asked.

"As I'll ever be," Lisbon answered, smiling at him slightly as she locked her door and stuffed the keys into her pocket.

"Well, that's better than not being ready at all," Jane said, slipping his hand through her's and holding onto it tightly as they walked to his car together.

He took her to a partially deserted park an hour away from Sacramento, they sat on an old wooden bench and ate cheesecake with plastic forks while they made small talk and people-watched.

And Jane wished that they had met in another time and place.

Because the more time he spent with her, the more he wanted something more than just friendship with her. He wanted to be able to say _love you_ and be able to actually own up to saying the words to her if she asked him what he meant by them.

He wanted the whole nine yards, from everything to a proposal all the way down to weekend honey to-do lists.

These newly awakened desires in him just drove him more to crack Lorelei and find Red John once and for all.

Because if he didn't, he'd never be able to have anything with Lisbon. He couldn't risk putting her in danger.

If anything ever happened to her, then he would die.

**.**

After they had finished their cheesecake, and the afternoon had grown considerably cooler, Jane hadn't wanted to say goodbye to Lisbon yet. So, they had driven around town until they found a movie theater showing a triple-feature of Tom Hanks's movies.

They had shared an extra-large popcorn and a box of Milk Duds while they had watched_ Sleepless in Seattle, _and _You've Got Mail_ because they'd been late for _Forrest Gump_. Afterwards, he'd taken her to get burgers and fries at a greasy diner.

He kept her out until her forced smiles were real again, and he was sure that she'd be okay by herself.

"Thanks for today," Lisbon said when he dropped her off later that night. "As much as I didn't want to go, it was just what I needed."

"I'm glad," Jane answered, taking her hand in his and rubbing her knuckles gently with his thumb before he raised it to his hand and kissed it tentatively.

He heard Lisbon gasp quietly and he looked at her seriously. She stared back at him, her eyes unblinking in the pale moonlight.

"I-I have to go," she finally whispered.

"Yeah," Jane replied, dropping her hand reluctantly. "I guess I'll see you tomorrow."

"Tomorrow," Lisbon repeated as she pulled her keys out of her jacket. She smiled at him slightly before turning around.

Jane watched her for a second, and then he cleared his throat. "Hey Lisbon?"

"Yeah Jane?" She asked, whirling around to look at him.

"Same time next week?" He asked hopefully.

"Oh," Lisbon said, biting her lip for a second before nodding slowly. "Yeah, same time next week. . . actually, hopefully a little bit earlier."

"Good."

"Goodnight Jane," Lisbon whispered as she slipped inside her apartment.

"Goodnight," Jane replied to the closed door. _I love you, _he thought as he turned to leave.

**.**

Lisbon turned her living room light off and kicked off her uncomfortable high heels before falling on the couch and putting the old movie channel on. One of her favorite Grace Kelly movies was playing, but all she could think about was how she had spent the whole afternoon and most of the evening with Jane.

He had known something was bothering her, but instead of trying to force her to tell him what was wrong he had just been there for her. And he hadn't left until she was honestly smiling again, until whatever hurt she felt had been a dull ache in her chest.

He had that effect on her.

Even in the wake of being the person who had been a huge cause of her grief, he could still take her sorrow away with a touch of her hand.

Lisbon caught her breath as the realization hit her like ice water to the face.

She _loved _him.

Not just as a friend.

And more than a sister loved her brother.

The thought scared her completely to death.

**TBC. . .**

**Author's Note II:**

**Yeah, a cliff-hanger. But I promise the story will be wrapped up soon. Actually, I should have everything finished in two more chapters. . . better to stop while I'm ahead, instead of catching up with myself and making this story completely awful.**

**Anyways, I hope you'll tell me what you thought of this chapter. Was it the same thing as last week? Worse? Or better? Really, I want to know, so click on the review button and leave me your thoughts. I won't bite.**

**Oh! And in case you missed it, I wrote a missing scene from "Sinking", it's month four from Lisbon's POV. Check it out if you haven't already.**

**Until Next Time!**

**Love,**

**Holly, 9/22/2012_**

**P.S**

**I have a really good soundtrack for this story. I should have it ready soon, be on the lookout for it!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Shout-Outs: CastleTyger, jessicalon7, and AngryLittlePrincess for reviewing chapter 3. Your feedback was much appreciated. **

**Author's Note:**

**A few things to get out of the way. First of all, I'd like to wish Frogster a very happy belated birthday, this chapter is for you. I hope you like it. **

**And second of all, I'd like to wish my "little" brother a Happy Birthday today. He's amazing and I love him with all my heart.**

**Disclaimer:**

**I own nothing. Not "Heartbreak Warfare" by John Mayer (I don't even own a copy, I just listen to the song on iTunes), or the Mentalist. . . well, I kinda own the Mentalist DVDs. But that doesn't count, and in reality the DVDs are my brother's.**

**.**

**Chapter 4**

_She loved him._

After one week to come to terms with this fact, she wasn't terrified anymore. In fact, she wanted nothing more than to wrap her arms around him and whisper the words in Jane's ear before kissing him senseless.

The only thing stopping her was the fear of rejection.

Yes, he had told her that he loved her. But then later on, he had told her that whatever he had said, had been said because he was hyped up. She didn't think there was any way he could love her in that way. . . whatever had been going on between them the past three weeks was just his way of trying to repair their friendship.

She just wished he could see there was no way that things could go back to the way they were before. That they needed to move forward, or just let go altogether.

Because now that she knew she loved him, there was no way that she could just be his friend. (Even though, she would have rather spent the rest of her life only being his friend opposed to spending the rest of her life without him.)

"What's on your mind?" Jane asked, breaking into her thoughts. "You've barely said two words put together since you got here."

"I'm just thinking. . ." Lisbon answered.

"Thinking?" Jane repeated.

Lisbon ducked her head and nodded as she took a sip of coffee.

Please_, please just say it first. . . _Jane thought as he watched her crumble what was left of her bear claw between her fingers. _If you say it first, maybe—_

"Are we just going to spend the morning here?" Lisbon asked after a long moment of silence.

"What else is there to do?" Jane replied, looking out the window and at the gloomy Sunday afternoon. "There's nothing much more we can do, unless you want to go to the movies. They're showing Pretty Woman at the theater we went to last week, if we leave now we could make it just in time."

There was no way that Lisbon wanted to go and see _Pretty Woman_, of all movies with Jane. Sitting in the dark and watching a romantic comedy with the man that she loved was only a recipe for heartache.

But on the other hand, refusing would only raise questions because it was one of her favorite movies, and he knew it.

She sighed as she wiped her fingers off on a napkin and looked at Jane. "Okay, let's go and see Pretty Woman then."

"I think they're showing Notting Hill and Runaway Bride as well as Pretty Woman," Jane said as he pulled her chair out and helped her into her jacket.

"Great," Lisbon replied, shoving her hands into her pockets and following Jane out of the bookstore.

"We don't have to go if you don't want to," Jane told her as he turned around to look at her.

"It's fine," Lisbon said through her teeth. "I really don't mind if we go to the movies."

"Okay, there's something bothering you," Jane said. "And don't tell me that there isn't, because I've known you long enough to know that you aren't telling the truth."

"It's just. . ." Lisbon trailed off and sighed deeply. "I guess I'm not just in the mood to watch romantic comedies this afternoon."

Jane sigh echoed that of Lisbon's, taking the subtle approach wasn't getting him anywhere. He just needed to put it out there that he _knew_. He opened his mouth and took a deep breath, but he found that he couldn't form the words that he wanted to.

"Maybe we should just call it an afternoon then," he suggested after a long moment.

He knew if they spent the rest of the afternoon together, it could only go one way. Especially now that he knew that she knew she had feelings for him too. And no matter how much he wanted to, he wasn't exactly ready to face _really _crossing the line of friendship into something more.

Lorelei's threat from the week before still loomed over his head like an impending rain cloud. And because of it, he still couldn't bring himself to tell her how he felt. (Part of him didn't even want Lisbon to tell him how _she_ felt about him because if she did, her words could have the same consequences that his did.)

"Maybe we should," Lisbon said softly, breaking into his thoughts.

"What?" Jane asked.

"Maybe we should just call it an afternoon," she answered. "Maybe it would be for the best."

"Lisbon!" Jane said as she started to walk into the wet afternoon.

She turned around to look at him, a hint of hope in her eyes. "Yeah?"

"If this were any other time. . . or any other place, things would be different. You know that right?" He asked.

"I know," she replied quietly, her grip tightening on her keys. "I know."

"I-I just can't lose you," Jane continued. "If anything happened to you, I honestly don't know I would survive. I've lost so much already. . . you have to understand."

"I do," Lisbon assured him.

"One day. . . when things are better, when he's gone. . . I promise—"

"Don't make promises you can't keep," Lisbon requested desperately. "Please."

"I promise that one day, I'll tell you everything I can't today," Jane said. "I promise Lisbon."

Lisbon looked at him sadly. "Yeah, I guess we'll just have to see, won't we? I'll see you later Jane."

"Could you please just have a _little_ faith in me?" Jane asked.

"I don't know," she admitted. "I'd like to try, but I think it's going to be hard."

"So?" Jane said. "You knew that when you signed up to work with me that it was going to be hard. And that didn't stop you from doing it."

Lisbon took a deep breath and looked at him, her heart swelling with unspeakable love for him, and she knew once again she was going to do exactly what he asked. Even though in the end, it could cost her everything.

"Okay," she finally agreed. "Just-just don't break my heart, okay?"

"I swear Lisbon, I swear won't break your heart." Jane promised.

**.**

Lisbon felt completely and utterly numb as she stared out of her window at the pouring rain. She knew that getting emotionally involved with Jane would just break her heart in the end. He would kill Red John then she would have to arrest him and have to watch him go through a trial where they would probably sentence him to a life in prison.

They would end before they had even got a chance to begin.

She didn't want to wait for the proverbial tomorrow to start something with him. She wanted something now, because nobody – not even Patrick Jane – knew what the future held. By staying apart, they were trying to save themselves from heartache that could very well be inevitable.

But Jane was so stubborn at times that he wouldn't listen to reason. She wouldn't be able to convince him that being together, loving each other was better than waiting for a future that could be just as empty as their present.

_Please Jane_, _for both our sakes, don't do anything to screw this up. . . please, _she begged him silently.

_Please merciful Father, please let him realize that revenge is for fools and madmen just like he said all those years ago. . . please. I just want to love him for the rest of my life, please let that be possible. . ._

She didn't bother to tack on an _amen_ to the end of her prayer, because it was a prayer that she would be continuing until Red John was finally found and killed by Jane or another member of her team or (hopefully) behind bars, waiting for the right kind of justice to be served.

**.**

"We can do this all day Lover," Lorelei said, her lips curling into a cruel smile as she stared across the table at Jane. "I'm not going to breathe a_ single_ word to you about him."

Jane looked back at her unblinkingly. "Now Lorelei, we've been through this before. It's only a matter of time before I make you talk. It's just finding the right trigger to get you to do it."

Lorelei's eyes narrowed slightly. "You can try all you want, but I'm still not going to break. I bet you anything if you knew something incriminating about your precious Teresa, you wouldn't sell her out. Not even if it meant that you could lose your life because of it."

Jane shrugged. "Maybe I would, maybe I wouldn't. I've done a lot worse than selling out somebody I'm in love with."

"So, you admit that you're in love with her then?" Lorelei asked, arching a finely shaped eyebrow.

Jane vaguely wondered how she could be so well-groomed for somebody in prison. But he pushed the thought aside and forced himself back on track.

"I'm not admitting to anything," he replied.

Lorelei sighed in exasperation, and leaned forward to look at him. "You said you've done a lot worse than sell out the person that you're in love with. Tell me, what have you done that's so bad?"

He shook his head. "No. We're talking about _you _right now, not me."

She clammed up immediately and shook her head. "Try and make me talk. I never will. . . _never_."

Jane almost slammed his fist on the table having Lorelei in custody was turning out to be just as fruitless as his trip to Vegas had been. He would have given up if it hadn't been for Lisbon's hopeful face in the rainy afternoon earlier that day.

He took a deep breath and decided to try another angle. It was definitely not one of his best ideas ever, but he would try anything to finally end the nightmare and move on with his life.

Because somewhere across town, in a condo big enough for two, a beautiful woman was waiting for him to do just that, and he didn't want to disappoint her again.

**.**

"Jane?" Lisbon said as she opened her door later that night. "What are you doing here? I thought we both agreed to call it a day earlier."

"Actually," Jane replied stepping into her condo. "We agreed to call it an _afternoon_."

She shrugged and shoved a spoonful of ice cream into her mouth. "That's just a technicality."

"Do you want me to go?" he asked. "Because just say the word, and I will."

"Cut the bull Jane, we both know that isn't true," Lisbon replied as she closed the door behind him. "Now tell me what you want."

_You_, Jane thought, but he didn't voice his thought aloud. He had barely started to crack Lorelei, he couldn't risk getting completely sappy with her. Not yet.

But she was looking at him expectantly, her face void of any kind of makeup, and her eyes wide with unasked questions.

And that was when he threw caution to the wind and gathered her up in his arms. She gasped slightly as the carton of ice cream she was holding fell to the floor.

"You're cleaning that up," she whispered, her pulse speeding up slightly.

"Yes ma'am," he whispered back before framing her face with his hands and putting his lips to her's as he kissed her as gently as he possibly could.

He trembled slightly when she wound her arms around his neck and embraced him, an active participant of the activity.

His last coherent thought was that he hadn't made a huge error in judgment by finally giving into his desires and that everything would turn out alright in the end.

Because he still didn't know what he was going to do if it _didn't._

**TBC. . .**

**Author's Note II:**

**One more chapter and this should be done, but not over. I've been toying with the idea of writing the three missing chapters of "Sinking" from Jane's POV. Nothing solid yet, because this story has proven that sequels never do as well as their predecessors. Anyways, I hope you liked this chapter because it was a real pain to write.**

**Please, leave me your thoughts.**

**Oh! And "A Month of Sundays, the soundtrack" should be ready soon. I just need to add a few more tracks, and make a cover. It'll be on my Tumblr and Livejournal when it's finished though.**

**Love,**

**Holly, 9/25/2012_**

**P.S**

**First things first. I added the kissing scene on a complete whim. I know it might not fit the flow of this chapter exactly, but I was DYING for some Jane/Lisbon-love.**

**That being said, I am a complete virgin. I haven't even been kissed, and that's why my kissing scenes are always lackluster. Please excuse them while I wait for my Mr. Imperfect to come and sweep me off my feet. I promise, one day I'll improve.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Shout-outs: ****Frogster (for reviewing chapter 3 & 4). LaurenvBelladonna, jessocalon7, and CastleTyger**

**Disclaimer: ****I don't own anything. You know this, because you know what would happen if I did own the Mentalist.**

**.**

**Chapter 5**

_**Six Months Later**_

"We shouldn't have done that," Jane whispered as he broke the kiss. "Red John—"

"Yeah," Lisbon agreed softly, opening her eyes and looking up at him. "I know."

"We can't do this," Jane said. "We shouldn't do this. . . not until he's gone—"

"You're right, of course," Lisbon agreed half-heartedly, not bothering to put any distance between them. "We should just wait—"

And then, Jane had kissed Lisbon again. This time more deeply, more passionately. . . more desperately than the last time. And Lisbon had kissed him back, because she had been the one who hadn't wanted to wait until Red John was gone to start a relationship with him.

She wasn't scared.

Because if anything did happen to her, she didn't want to regret the things she didn't get a chance to do.

"Lisbon—" Jane whispered, pulling away slightly.

"Shh!" She said, putting a finger to his lips. "Don't say anything. Everything will be okay, I promise. I want this Patrick. I don't want to wait for tomorrow. . . because tomorrow might never come. And then we might have to spend the rest of our lives wondering what could have happened."

"But if anything happens to you—"

"Then it was meant to be," Lisbon answered. "But it could happen even if we aren't together. Who knows what Red John has up his sleeve? Even if we aren't together he could suddenly decide he wants to take me from you. Did you ever think about that?"

"I try not to think about it," Jane replied. "You don't understand. . . if anything happens to you—"

"But I'm still here, nothing's happened to me yet," Lisbon whispered soothingly. "And besides, I've told you before. . . I'm a cop, I can handle it."

Jane sighed and dropped his forehead against her's. "You say that now. But what happens if you're actually ever in a situation where Red John has you?"

"I'll shoot him, or arrest him. . . or something," Lisbon answered. "I promise that I won't let him hurt me."

"Lisbon—"

"I love you Patrick," she interrupted as she brushed her lips against his.

"I-I-I love you too," Jane finally admitted.

"Then let's just do this thing," Lisbon whispered, touching his lips with her fingers before allowing her forehead to drop against his. "Let me love you."

Jane closed his eyes and took a deep breath, trying to relax himself before giving into her kiss. . . before giving into her.

**.**

A couple weeks after Lisbon and Jane had finally given into the thing they had been dancing around since they had met each other; they had finally found Red John.

And it had been completely by accident too, one of his neighbors had discovered him in his own backyard, dead from a heart attack. The proof that he was one of California's most notorious serial killers had been on his body (a discreet Red John mark on his left shoulder).

And there had been proof all over his study.

He had kept careful track of every murder he had committed through journal entries and newspaper clippings. He even had DVDs from the various news stations that had run segments of his bigger, more prolific killings.

After a lot of persuasion, they finally got Lorelei to confirm the man was indeed Red John. A follow up affirmation from Rosalind was the finally evidence they needed to finally close the case for good.

And then, Jane had run away again.

But this time, Lisbon had followed him. She had shown up at his Malibu beach house a day later and found him sitting on the beach, staring out into the ocean. She hadn't said anything to him; she had just pulled him into her arms and held him while he didn't cry. And they had sat there until it had grown so dark, they couldn't see each other clearly.

The next day, she had driven into town and returned two hours later, wearing cut-off jeans and a faded, oversized plaid t-shirt. She looked at him, a question in her green eyes, and then she had held up roller brushes and a can of paint.

"Do you want to?" She had asked gently. "I mean, it's your choice and we don't have to if you don't want to, but it's out there."

It had taken him a minute to understand what she was talking about. Then, he realized that she knew all about Red John's calling card in the master bedroom, and she was giving him the key to finally moving on with his life.

And even though he knew that he loved her, and that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. It was hard to finally move on and let go of his past.

He had almost said no and told her that he wasn't quite ready yet. But then he had looked at her, and seen the pleading look in her eyes.

And he couldn't refuse.

So, he chose them.

**.**

That night, after they had cleaned up the paint brushes and gotten something to eat from a non-descript shack on the beach, they went back to his house and started to kiss each other, affirming their love for each other with the moon as their only light and the waves crashing against the shore as their soundtrack.

When morning had come, they had gone to his favorite café for breakfast, over thick slices of mushroom and goat cheese quiche and crispy bacon; he had taken off his wedding ring and pressed it into her hand. It was the final thing that he needed to do to finally move on from his past and let her see that he chose them. . . that he chose _her_.

And then, he had asked her to marry him.

She looked at him with smiling eyes as she took his hand and answered without hesitating for a second, she said _yes_.

_**Two Months Later**_

The rain beat a steady tattoo on their bedroom window as Jane watched his sleeping wife. She was snuggled up securely against his side and he was gently tracing the faint dusting of freckles on her nose, trying not to wake her.

She'd be awake soon enough and rushing to get ready for mass.

Her eyes fluttered open when his fingers grazed her lips and looked at him, smiling sleepily. "Hey."

"Hey," he answered.

"It's raining," Lisbon murmured as she nuzzled his neck, and closed her eyes again. "Maybe I'll just stay home, go to the later mass."

"Sounds like a good idea," Jane replied, trying not to show how pleased he was with _that _particular plan.

"But if I don't go now, I'll never want to get up," Lisbon said.

"And that's a problem because—?" Jane asked, letting the question go unfinished.

"_Jane,"_ she replied, like the answer was the most obvious thing in the world.

"What?" He asked innocently, grinning slightly.

"Wipe that stupid smile off your face."

"Does that mean that you're staying home then?"

"Maybe," Lisbon replied faintly as she drifted off to sleep again.

They didn't wake up for another three hours. As they made brunch, Lisbon pretended to be mad at him for making her miss church, but he knew from the laughter in her voice that she wasn't really upset at all.

**.**

That night, when they were getting ready for bed, she looked at him as she finished capping the toothpaste.

He knew what was coming next, she had been asking the same thing every other day for two months. He rinsed his mouth out and waited for the question to come.

She came over to him and wrapped her arms around him, pulling him securely against her. "How you feeling?"

He buried his face in her hair and breathed her in slowly. For the past two months he had answered the same thing.

_I'm fine._

He knew that she was growing tired of hearing the same answer though, and that _fine _wasn't very reassuring to begin with. And it wasn't like he had been trying to be difficult; he just hadn't known any other way to answer her.

Except the right answer had been right under his nose the whole entire time. He had come up with it when he had been in Vegas.

He closed his eyes and rubbed circles in her back. "I feel like I'm home."

**_The End_**

**Author's Note:**

**Well, that's the end of that. I really hoped you enjoyed this sequel, because it was written for all the people who wanted to know what happened after "Sinking". It honestly wasn't my first choice to write, but I did it because I honestly love all my readers.**

**That being said, I'd love to hear what you guys thought about this story. And what I wrote above was in no way a bribe to get you to review. I just wanted to tell you what I was thinking.**

**I will say the most fun I had with this story was the soundtrack. I actually have a bonus one that I'm going to make up. I'm posting it on my Livejournal, and tumblr. When it's done, I'll tweet the link.**

**Oh! And if you're interested, I have a Castle/Mentalist crossover that I started on Wednesday called "the Writer & the Consultant". It's supposed to have two parts, but who knows what will happen when I get down to finishing it. It might be longer.**

**Anyways, that's all for now. Thanks for sticking with this story.**

**Until Next Time!**

**Love,**

**Holly, 9/28/2012_**


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